The collapse of local news isn’t just an industry crisis — it’s a democratic and community crisis. 

Layoffs and corporate consolidation have hollowed out independent newsrooms across Pennsylvania, leaving too many residents in the dark about what’s happening in their streets, schools, and halls of power. 

Seventeen counties are now left with just one or zero news sources, and the newsrooms that remain in these counties often have just a handful of reporters. 

This deficit comes at a steep cost. Strong local reporting has been linked to better governance, reduced public spending, lower levels of corruption, greater civic engagement, and stronger community trust. 

Local news and civic information are true public goods, and too many communities across the state lack access to them, particularly rural communities, working-class communities, non-English speaking communities, and communities of color.

To make matters worse, steep federal cuts to public media threaten to further erode access to trusted information — especially in rural regions where public broadcasters are often the only remaining local news providers. 

Some stations outside of major media markets, like Erie’s WQLN, stand to lose nearly half their funding, a devastating blow that will surely lead to layoffs and decreased services. Without meaningful state action, the basic information needs of our communities will increasingly go unmet.

For the sake of our civic health as a commonwealth, it’s time for lawmakers to treat local news as the public good that it is. To that end, please join me in advancing two key pieces of legislation:

● The first will create and fund a Pennsylvania Civic Information Consortium (CIC), which will distribute public dollars in the form of grants to local newsrooms and organizations focused on filling the most critical information gaps facing Pennsylvanians. The CIC, modeled after a successful bipartisan New Jersey program that has distributed over $10 million in public funds for local news, will be an independent body outside of the state government to ensure editorial independence, protect against government interference, and allow it to raise private philanthropic dollars from local, state, and national foundations.
 
● The second will establish a state fellowship program for local news, placing early-career journalists in community newsrooms across the state to strengthen reporting capacity where it’s needed most. This fellowship program has been successfully piloted in California, New Mexico, and Washington State recently, and has placed reporters on the ground in communities that have seen local coverage eliminated in the past two decades. 

Both models have been successfully implemented in other states, with proven safeguards for editorial independence, strong community impact, and broad public support.

 With journalism on the brink throughout the state, now is the time to make a wise, non-partisan investment in our democracy and our civic well-being.